Apparatus for destructive distillation.



S. E. SEAMAN.

APPARATUS FOR DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 27, I916.

1,236,885 Patented Au 14, 1917.

S. E. SEAMAN.

APPARATUS FOR DESTRUCTIVE msnumom.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 27, I916- Patented Aug. 14, 1917.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFTQE.

STEWART E. SEAMAN, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO SEAMAN WASTE WOODCHEMICAL COMPANY, INC., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION.

Application filed May 27, 1916.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, STEWART E. SEAMAN, a citizen of the United States,and'a resident of the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State ofNew York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Apparatus forDestructive Distillation, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact description.

My invention relates to improvements 1n apparatus for the destructivedistillation of wood, preferably more or less finely divided, such assawdust, shavings, chipped wood and the like, and also the destructivedistillation of hull bran, nut shells, cotton-seed hulls, cellulose,lignum, and other materials which produce distillates worth recovering.The material treated usually produces a charcoal which is also valuable.Heretofore great difficulties have occurred in the continuousdistillation of products of the kind memtioned, principally from thefact that it has been found difiicult toexclude oxygen from the retortin which the materials are heated, so that explosive mixtures are formedor serious fires have occurred, and furthermore difficulties have arisenin properly separating the gases and in getting the non-condensablegases back to the furnace where they could be suitably used for fuel toheat the retort. The gases and vapors liberated in the retort have agreat tendency to work back through the charge and become mixed withatmospheric air, thus producing combustion or explosion and there hasbeen a tendency for the gas fed to the furnace to flare back and dodamage. The object of my present in vention is to overcome thesedifficulties and provide a simple, safe and efficient means of.

carrying on distillation, preferably continuous. More specifically theobject of my invention is to produce an apparatus in which arotaryretort is highly-heated, and in which the charge as it is fed tothe retort is compressed so as to seal the intake end of the retort, andfurther to exclude most of the oxygen from the charge by compression. Furthermorel carry out the same idea by using the charcoal carbonized orresidue ma terial which is discharged from the retort in such a way asto seal the discharge end of the retort, thus preventing the escape ofall the vapors and gases except through their proper outlet t0.asuitable condenser. An-

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. ML, 1917.

Serial No. 100,191. I

for condensing the gases and vapors so far as possible, using theuncondensed gases for fuel to heat the retort, and interposing a seal,preferably a water seal, in the track of the uncondensed gases betweenthe furnace and the condenser so that there can be no flareback to thecondenser from the retort. Another object of my invention is to improvethe construction of such apparatus to the end that the work may becarried forward rapidly and economically.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar reference characters indicatecorresponding parts i-n'all the views.

Figure l is a longitudinal section of the apparatus embodying myinvention.

Fig. Q-is a cross section showing the arrangement of the plural retortsin the form of a battery.

Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation on the line 33 of 'Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is a detail sectional view of a plunger and conveyor mechanism atthe discharge end. of the apparatus.

The apparatus utilizes a rotary retort 10 which is preferablycylindrical, having a reduced or neck portion 10 at the intake end whichis preferably integral with the body of the retort and serves thepurpose of a driving shaft as well as an inlet. The neck whilestructurally a part of the retort, is not so functionally as noreduction takes place therein. It is an extension of the feed pipe andremoves the feeding means from the heat zone of the retort, interposinga quantity of compressed matter in the form of a seal between the hotgases of the retort and the feed. This simplifies the end constructionof the retort and makes it exceedingly strong. The retort is mounted insuitable brickwork 11 or the like, and in Fig. 2 I have shown a batteryof two retorts and accessory apparatus, though obviously batteries ofany desired number can be arranged.

The retorts are provided with internal blades 12 to keep the stock ormaterial in the retort agitated, and each retort is mounted in a heatdistributing chamberl2 which receives its heat from a heating chamber orflue 13 connecting with the firebox 14 of the furnace, and numerousports 15 open other object of my invention is to provide 1 through thewall of the chamber 13 into parting from the principle of the invention.

The neck 10 of the retort is mounted in a suitable bearing 17 as shownin Fig. 1, and the discharge end of the retort is preferably unreducedand turns in the gland 18 connecting with the hollow head 19, and byreference to Fig. 1 it will be seen that this arrangement provides forthe longitudinal eX-- pansion of the retort while preserving a tightoint.

The retort can be rotated in any suitable manner, and I have shown theneck 1O provided with a worm-wheel 20 meshing with a worm 21 which canbe turned in any suit able way, and behind the worm-wheel 20 is a collar22 adapted to abut with an arm 22 on the support of the bearing 17, andalso provided with an arm 22 adapted to abut with the support of thebearing 17, thus providing for the end thrust of the retort. This is asimple and suitable means for taking up the thrust of the retort, butany suitable thrust bearings can be. substituted. It will be observedthat some sort of thrust bearing is desirable, as the retort is inclinedso that the material within it as it carbonizes will gravitate to thedischarge end of the retort.

The neck 10 ofwthe retort terminates at its outer end in a gland 23which receives the feed pipe 24 which discharges into the neck 10 Thefeed pipe is supported in a suitable bearing 25 on a bracket 25 which iscarried by the brickwork 11, although the pipe can be supported in anysuitable manner. The feed pipe 24 receives the material to be treatedfrom a hopper 26, and a plunger 27 reciprocates below the mouth of theopper and rams the charge into the pipe 24 and neck 10 of the retort,and the material drops from the neck into the body of the re tort. Theabove arrangement is very important, and care should be taken to havethe stroke of the plunger 27 of such length that it will not quite reachthe back wall of the hopper 26 where it enters the pipe 24, so thatthere will be a little clearance at the hopper mouth from which theoxygen expelled by the ramming of the charge can pass out through theloose material in the hopper. The back stroke of the plunger 27 shouldbring the inner end of the plunger just back-of the front wall of thehopper 26,

so that at each stroke the dust and finely divided material of thecharge will be wiped oil' the plunger, otherwise the plunger would soonclog.

I have found from actual experience that the ramming of the. charge isthe surest and safest way to expel the oxygen from the charge and toseal the intake end of the retort. My experience has shown that thecharge becomes so thoroughly compressed in the neck 10 and pipe 24 thatan effective seal is made, and none of the vapors from the retort passback through the compressed charge. I believe that it is novel to efiect the seal of a retort in this manner, and I do not limit my inventionto the particular plunger arrangement, although I have found this to bedesirable. The plunger 27 can be operated in any convenient manner, andI have shown it provided with a connecting rod 28 leading to aneccentric 29 working in a casing 30 at the outer. end of the pipe 24,and driven by a pulley 31 or equivalent means of driving. 1

At the discharge end of the retort the latter is preferably supported ona spider 32 which is attached to a shaft 33, and the shaft extendsthrough a gland 19 in the head 19 and is supported in a bearing 34 whichis carried by the bracket 35 attached to the head 19, and the bearing 34is pref erably an adjustable one as shown in Fig. 3,

any suitable form of adjustment being used.

At the lower portion of the hollowhead 19 a pocket 36 is formed whichdischarges into a pipe 37 extending transversely of the retort as shownin Fig. 3, and in this pipe is a conveyer 38 which carries thecarbonized product, usually charcoal, from the retort into a hopper 37*,.this havingpreferably a removable cover 37 and delivering into a pipe39 in which operates a plunger 27 this working like the plunger 27already referred to and serving to ram the. material discharged from thepipe 37 and compress it in the pipe 39, and thus it will be seen thatthe material discharged from the retort is compressed so as to make aneffective seal against the escape of gases or vapors.

I have shown the pipe 39 having at one end a casing 40 to incase theplunger working mechanism, this arrangement being similar to that of thecasing 30 at the' intake end of the apparatus. The pipe 39 dischargesinto a suitable receptacle 41. The gases and vapors freedfrom thematerial in the retort pass out from the upper part of the head19'through a pipe 42 and into a condenser 43 which can be of anypreferred type. This is provided with a gooseneck 44 through which thedistillates or condensed materials are drawn, and a pipe 44 carries offthe uncondenscd gases and delivers them to a water seal '45. The gasesbubble through the seal and continue on through a pipe 46 to thefire-box'14 ofthe furnace. These gases contain tarry matter,

and it is desirable to mingle air with the gases as they enter thefurnace,'and to this end the pipe 46 enters the furnace through an airpipe 47, thus getting aBunsen burner efi'ect. With some materials I findthat the gases are sufficient to provide all the heat necessary forcarrying on the distillation, that is the thorough heating of the retortand in any event they assist in providing the necessary fuel. IVhereattempts have been made to utilize these uncondensed gases for heatingretort furnaces, in some cases the flare back from the furnace will passthrough the condenser or at least into it, and will result in damage tothe apparatus, but the water seal absolutely prevents any flare back.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that I provide acomparatively simple, safe, rapid, and efficient means for carrying onthe destructive distillation of many kinds of material, of saving thedistillates, of utilizing the non-condensable gases for fuel, and ofpreserving the carbonized material.

IYhile I have shown my improvement as applied to the destructivedistillation of finely divided cellulose material, it will be understoodthat in some of its broader aspects it is not limited to the destructivedistillation, in which case the residue products after the vapors andgases are withdrawn from the retort may not be carbonized, and while myinvention is best carried out in a continuous process, it will be seenthat if the process is not continuous still it may involve many featuresof my invention.

I claim 1. An apparatus for continuous distillation of wood or othersimilar material comprising a continuously operating retort, a valvelesspassageway for feeding the retort, and mbans for compressing materialwhile in a finely divided state in said passageway to expel airtherefrom, and continuously to force such material while thus compressedthrough the passageway into the retort.

2. In an apparatus for the continuous distillation of wood or othersimilar material, the combination of a rotary retort, a valvelesspassageway leading to the retort, and means for compressing the materialto be treated in such passageway to expel air therefrom and continuouslyto force .such material while thus compressed into the retort.

3. In an apparatus for the destructive distillation of wood or othersimilar material, the combination of a continuously operating retort andmeans for compressing such material to expel air therefrom and to forcesuch material while thus compressed into the retort.

4. In an apparatus for the continuous distillation of wood or othermaterial, the combination of a continuously operating retort inwhichgases or vapors are continuously generated, an exterior valveless inletpassageway to said retort, said passageway having its inlet portionspaced apart from the retort, and means for forcing such material whilein a finely divided state into such passageway, compressing it tightlytherein to form a seal in the passageway against the escape of saidgases or vapors and forcing it therethrough into'the retort, wherebysuch material may be continuously fed to the retort Without the escapeof gases or vapors back from the retort through the from the retortthrough the inlet passageway.

6. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary retort, astationary valveless feed pipe exterior of but delivering to the retort,a hopper for the feed pipe spaced apart from the retort to provide for acontinuous seal between the hopper and the retort, and a plungerreciprocating in the feed pipe to ram the charge therein, seal the feedpipe, and arranged to feed .material while the retort is in operation.

7. In an apparatus for the destructive distillation of wood or othersimilar material, the combination of a rotary retort, a stationaryexterior passageway leading to the retort having an inlet spaced apartfromthe retort, and means for utilizing the charge as it is fed throughthe passageway to the retort to continuously seal the passageway fromthe escape of gaseous products from the retort from said passageway.

8. In an apparatus for distilling Wood or other similar material, thecombination of a retort, and means for utilizing the carbonizedmaterialas it is Withdrawn from the retort to seal the outlet from theescape of gaseous products from the retort through said outlet.

9. In an apparatus for distilling woodor other similar material, thecombination of a retort, means for drawing off the gaseous products fromthe retort, and means for utilizing the residue material as it iswithdrawn from the retort to seal the outlet passage for the saidresidue material from the escape of gaseous products through suchoutlet.

10. In an apparatus for distilling wood or other similar material, thecombination of a retort, a discharge passageway for the removal of theresidue material after distillation, and means for compressing suchresidue material tightly into the discharge passageway and forcing ittherethrough in such tightly compressed condition whereby the residuematerial will be discharged from the retort without permitting theescape of gases or vapors from the retort through the dischargepassageway.

11. In apparatus for distilling wood or other similar material, thecombination of a retort, an inlet passageway to the retort, a hopper forfeeding the charge or material to the passageway, and a reciprocatingplunger located beneath the hopper and in line with the passageway andadapted to force the said material into the passageway and to compressit in such operation to force out air from said material as it entersthe passageway, and to force the compressed material through thepassageway and into the retort, the said plunger in its forward orcompressing movement stopping short of the-side of the hopper near theoutlet of the passageway so as to permit the escape of a1r from thematerial as it is being compressed.

12. In an apparatus of the kind described, the combination of a retort,an inlet passageway to the retort, means for feeding a charge ormaterial to be treated in a finely divided form to the passageway andthrough an. opening in the'wall thereof, and a reciprocating plungerarranged to ram the material in the passageway and force the materialinto the passageway, and to compress it in such operation to force outair from the said material as it enters the passageway, and to force thecompressed material through the passageway and into the retort, the saldplunger in its forward or compressing movement stopping short of theside of the opening in the passageway wall nearest the retort so as topermit the escape of air from the material as it is being compressed.

13. In apparatus for distilling wood or other similar material, thecombination of a retort, an inlet passageway to the retort, a hopper forfeeding the cellulose or other material in a finely divided form to thepassageway, and a reciprocating plunger located beneath the hopper andin line with the passageway, and adapted to force the said material intothe passageway and to compress it in such operation to force out airfrom the said material as it enters the passageway, and to force thecompressed material through the passageway and into the retort, the saidplunger in its forward or compressing movement stopping short of theside of the hopper near the outlet of the passageway so as to permit theescape of air from the material as it is being compressed, the plungeron its return stroke withdrawing underneaththe bottom of the other wallof the hopper to remove the material from the top of the plunger toprevent clogging of the plunger.

masses tinuously forcing such material into the.

passageway, compressing it tightly therein, and continuously forcing ittherethrough while the retort is in operation, whereby the passage ofsuch material through such passageway may be effected without the escapeof gases or vapors from the retort.

15. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a retort, means forheating the retort, means for drawing off the vapors and gasestherefrom, means for feeding a charge to the retort and utilizing thefeed as a seal to prevent the escape of gases through the inlet, meansfor withdrawing residue material after the gases have been liberated,and means for utilizing the residue material as it is withdrawn to sealthe outlet for such material against the escape of gases from the retortthrough such outlet.

16. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary retort havinga reduced neck rigidly connected with its body, and a gland in the neck,a valveless feed pipe entering the gland whereby the feed pipe andreduced neck form a continuous passageway, and means for forcingmaterial to be treated through the feed pipe and neck to the retort.

17. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary retort havinga reduced rigid neck at one end forming a feed inlet, said neck having agland therein, a feed pipe entering the gland of the neck so that thefeed pipe and neck form a continuous pas-v sageway, means forcompressing material in the feed pipeand neck to prevent the escape ofgases from the retort and to expel air from the material, means forforcing the said compressed material intothe retort, and means forremoving the treated material from the retort.

18. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary inclinedretort having a reduced pipe-like neck at its inlet end forming a partof the retort and provided with a gland, means for heating the retort, afeed pipe entering the gland of the neck, means for compressing materialto be treated in a feed pipe and forcing it thus compressed through thefeed pipe and neck to the retort, means for removing the gases fromtheretort, and means for removing the carbonized material from thelowerend of the retort.

19. An apparatus of the kind describ d comprising a rotary inclinedretort, means for heating the retort, a stationary feed pipe enteringthe retort, means for continuously compressing the charge as it entersthe retort thereby sealing the retort and expelling the oxygen from thecharge, and means for withdrawingthe treated material from the retort.

20. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary retort havinga reduced pipe-like inlet end, a stationary feed pipe connected end toend with the reduced part of the retort whereby the feed pipe andreduced end form a continuous inlet, means for compressing the chargefor the retort in said feed pipe while the retort is in operation, meansfor continuously forcing the material through the feed pipe and reducedend to the retort, and means for withdrawing the treated material fromthe retort.

21. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a retort, means forheating the retort, means for continuously compressing the charge as itenters the retort so as to seal the inlet and expel oxygen, means forwithdrawing the treated materials from the retort, and means forcontinuously compressing'such materials while being withdrawn to sealthe retort.

22. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a retort, a feed pipeentering the retort, means for ramming and thereby compressing thecharge as it passes through the feed pipe-so as to seal the retort andexpel air from the charge, means for withdrawing gases and vapors fromthe retort, an outlet pipe to carry away the residuum from the retort,and means for ramming the residuum in the outlet pipe as the material iswithdrawn thereby sealing the retort.

23. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a retort, means forcompressing the charge as it enters the retort thereby sealing thelatter, means for drawing 01f vapors and gases from the retort, andmeans for collecting the carbonized material from the retort and sealingthe retort therewith as such carbonized material is discharged.

24. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a rotary inclinedretort, means for heating the retort, means for continuously compressingthe charge as it enters the retort, means for withdrawing the vapors andgases from the retort, and means for compressing the carbonized materialas it is discharged from the retort thereby sealing the latter.

25. An apparatus of the kind described comprising a retort, means forheating the means for heating the retort, means forv drawing ofl vaporsand ases therefrom, and a plunger mechanism or compressing thecarbonized material as it leaves the retort thereby sealing the retort.

27. In an apparatus of the kind described the combination with therotary retort, of the stationary hollow head at the discharge end of theretort, means for withdrawing gases and vapors from said head, means fordischarging carbonized material from the lower portion of said head, andmeans for compressing said carbonized material and thereby sealing thesaid discharge end of the retort.

28. The combination with the rotary inclined retort, of an enlargedstationary hol low head connected with the discharge end of the retort,apocket formed in the lower part of the head, a conveyer connected withthe said pocket, and means for ramming and compressing the dischargedmaterial as it leaves the conveyer thereby sealing the discharge end ofthe retort.

29. An apparatus for the continuous destructivedistillation of wood orother similar material, comprisin a rotary retort, means forcontinuously eeding a chargeto the retort, means for continuously comressing the charge in the inlet to expel tlib air and form a seal, meansfor continuously discharging the carbonized products from the retort,means for continuously compressing such carbonized products as they arewithdrawn so as to seal the discharge end'of the retort, and means fordrawing oif the gaseous products of the retort.

STEWART E. SEAMAN.

Witnesses: Rmmonns Barrows, A. B. JACKSON.

